Silence of the Heart
by dark-coyote
Summary: 14 year old Kenshin joins the Ishin Shishi in order to help carve the way into a new era. But how did he turn from a youth into a unfeeling hitokiri? Life as a manslayer. *CHAPTER 2 UP*
1. Beginnings

Disclaimer: *whimper* do I have to…? Fine, fine, I do not own Kenshin or any other characters, happy? *sigh*

Here I go with my craziness, starting a new story because…[insert reason here]. This is my first Rurouni Kenshin fic, it takes place during the Revolution, revolves mostly around 14 year old Kenshin, how he turned into the cold-blooded murderer known as the Battousai. Here goes!

By the way, any information you may have of Kenshin's past, feel free to correct me or submit info. Thanx!

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Silence of the Heart

Beginnings

By Dark-Coyote

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"No." Hiko stated when Kenshin asked to join the Revolution. 

_"Master!" Kenshin exclaimed._

_"You should be thinking of your training, not worrying about outside affairs." Hiko turns his back on him._

_"But now a lot of people are being dragged into the fighting and getting killed! The whole idea behind the Hiten Mitsurugi school is to protect people from the suffering of the ages! If I can't use my sword now, when can I? Master!!" Pleaded Kenshin._

_"If you're telling me why, defeat me now and go." Kenshin whacked Hiko from behind with his sheathed sword. Hiko whirled around._

_"That was for real!" Hiko raged._

_"Because you don't understand!"_

_"You're the one who doesn't understand! Fine, but because of the strength of the Hiten Mitsurugi School, you have to be sure you'll win before you take sides! I'm talking about the landing of the Black Ships! Do you understand me? In other words—"_

_"I don't understand!" People are suffering before my eyes! They're in misery! I can't leave them as they are, no matter what the reason!" Argued Kenshin._

Kenshin woke up in cold sweat, his eyes large and bright. 

"Kuso," he muttered, then caught himself, swearing was not a habit of his. He had only left his master, Hiko Seijuurou, about two days ago, and he's already starting to fell like that he made a mistake somewhere along the line. 

He sighed, then raised his hands to rub his eyes. The light of dawn was already beginning to shine on the distant horizon, and today, he would make it there, to Kyoto, the place where he dreamed to be, a place where he could put his abilities to test and help carve the way to the new era.

He set off on foot, just like the way he had traveled the past two days, towards Kyoto. It was midmorning by the time he arrived at Choushuu, a group of armed men were gathered there, obviously here for the same reason he was.

Two men came over a hill, conversing. 

"I came all the way from Kyoto because you said you had something to show me. What is this, Shinsaku?" said one of the two men.

"You'll see. This is the strength of the new era. The Kiheitai!" Said the other man. "Birth or status means nothing! Anyone can join my Kiheitai if they have the ambition and the strength.  
  
"Certainly after 300 years of peace, they could be better than the soft samurai. But will this really work?" questioned the first speaker.  
 

"You worry too much. Look, even children." The man gestured at Kenshin, and beckoned him forward. Kenshin stepped forward, his sword strapped on his side.

"The kid brought his own sword. Give it a try, kid." A man laughed. "I'll give you a ryo if you cut it in half.

Kenshin gazed at his target, studying it. It was a thick wooden pole wrapped up in ropes. He slices the pole in halves with one stroke, and obliterated one half with his scabbard. 

"Shinsaku." One of the two men muttered. Kenshin turned towards the man who had promised him a ryo.

"One ryo." The man looked flabbergasts.

"Uh—"

"I'm taking this boy to Kyoto." One of the two men led Kenshin away from the others, the other followed suit.

Dinner was arranged and Kenshin found himself sitting with the two men from the morning, whom had introduced themselves as Takasugi Shinsaku and Katsura Kogoro. Katsura was the leader of the Ishin Shishi, which was the Kenshin's reason for coming to Kyoto.

"So that was the Hiten Mitsurugi School. I've heard of it, but I didn't know it truly existed . . . But let me ask you something. Have you ever killed a man with this Hiten Mitsurugi School?" Asked Katsura. Kenshin shook his head.

"No."

"Do you think you could?"

"If with my own dirty sword and the lives I take, I could pave the way for a new era in which all can live in peace—"

"I see." Katsura said, "we're leaving for Kyoto first thing in the morning. Take a room upstairs and rest." Kenshin left through the doorway and went upstairs.

"If you need Hitokiri that bad, you should do it yourself. When you were in Edo you were good enough to work your way up to the top of the Shindon Munnen school Renbeikan. Except for Sakamoto Ryouma of the Hokushin Ittori school, you never lost." Said Takasugi. Katsura furrowed his brows and replied:

"If I could, I would. But I'm the head of the Choushuu Ishin Shishi now."  
  
"Yeah. That's right." Retorted Takasugi, "You're the Choushuu shrine at the Bakumatsu festival. No one will carry a shrine that's covered in blood. So you're going to ruin that boy's life just so you can stay clean. If it means being driven into the jaws of death, or leaving a name that will shame generations to come, you should draw your own sword."  
  
"Don't think I haven't thought of that. Today is the anniversary of the death of Katsura Kogorou the swordsman."

Upstairs, Kenshin sat at the corner of his room, his gaze unfocused. Tomorrow he would begin his first day as a member of the Ishin Shishi.

All his life, he had really thought he was the 'Baka Deshi' he was told he was, but the appraising look he had gotten from Katsura and Takasugi that morning told him something else. Maybe he wasn't as stupid as he thought… 

Kenshin shifted uneasily, he had a sinking suspicion that the two men were probably talking about him right now. He looked down at his cloth, and grimaced, he hardly ever cared what he wore as long as it was comfortable for practicing swordsmanship, but he had hoped to have a good impression on the first day, but traveling just ruined it.

He laid down on his futon and dozed off, awaiting the next day.

The next morning, he again traveled by foot, along with a few others, into the city of Kyoto.

"Hey shorty!" One of the other men taunted, "How old are you? Ten?"

Kenshin flushed, and ignored the comment. He was already dead nervous about today, and the others aren't making it any easier for him. He gritted his teeth and walked on. 

Fifteen minutes later, they stopped in front of an inn. The landlady came out to greet them when she saw it was Katsura. He eyes roamed over the newly recruited members, lingered on Kenshin, and then smile a wide, warm, motherly smile. She was introduced as Okami.

Okami ushered everyone in and closed the doors, checking quickly outside, for any danger. Finding none, she retreated into the inn.

Kenshin looked at his surroundings, he was already getting stares from the other men at the inn, just great, this was not a good day…

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Umm…Good? Bad? Lacking info? Do I need mental help? No, wait, scratch that. If anyone has any suggestions, do tell. NO! DICEN! AWAY! *sweatdrops* I shouldn't have given my muses sugar, this morning. *pales* NOT THE T.V.! NOOOOO! Uhh, please review! *waves* Ja ne!

REVIEW! Just reach down…and click…that's right!


	2. Blooming friendship yeah right

Disclaimer: I don¡¯t own anything *glares* don¡¯t sue, I poor and cranky, so I bite. *glares again*

Here I am again! Very annoying, ne? Okay, minna, this chapter is completely fictional so if anything don¡¯t go the way it¡¯s supposed to, don¡¯t complain. Advices are always welcomed *grins* do I sound mean? Whoops. Summer School is OVER! Woohoo! *throws balloons around* Now I can update more frequently! Be happy peoples! *Crickets* uh¡­guys?

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Silence of the Heart

Blooming Friendship ¡­ yeah right

By Dark-Coyote

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The bustling dining room quieted as Katsura and the men entered. Kenshin glanced around the room with wide eyes, his attention snapped back to Katsura as he began speaking.

¡°Those behind me are the newly recruited members of the Ishin Shishi, they will be your comrades in battles from now on, and I expect you to treat them with respect.¡± The crowd in the room murmured to themselves, throwing occasional glances in Kenshin¡¯s direction, not quit believing that this ¡®little kid¡¯ is going to be part of their army in battle.

Kenshin shifted nervously from foot to foot, a feeling of dread dawning him as snickers were heard and smirks were thrown around in the crowd. His eyes scanned the dining room for a place to sit. Not finding any faces that he would exactly consider friendly, he settled for a small, rectangular table in the corner.

A girl about the same age as Kenshin came to his table with a small booklet in one hand and asked what he wanted to order, also while flirting shamelessly with him and giggling. When Kenshin realized what the girl was doing, he blushed profoundly and murmured a quiet refusal and proceeded to stare at the tabletop, which he suddenly found very interesting indeed.

Approaching footsteps announced the arrival of another. Kenshin looked up and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw a boy who was slightly older than himself, with a heedful of unruly brown hair that stuck in all directions and a cheerful and youthful face. He paused, and sat down when Kenshin didn¡¯t show any signs of objection.

¡°Konnichiwa! Watashi wa Daichi des, hajimemashite.¡± He smiled, ¡°onamai wa?¡±

¡°Kenshin,¡± replied the redhead, ¡°Himura Kenshin.¡±

Kenshin cocked his head slightly and studied the boy in front of him, the redness from before retracting from his features. Daichi smiled slightly, amusement obvious in his eyes.

¡°I see you have met Mali,¡± he said, managing to keep a straight face as he eyed Kenshin predicament.

¡°Mali? So that¡¯s her name.¡± Kenshin shuddered at the thought of the overly cheerful and bubbly girl from before.

¡°Did you think she was cute?¡± Daichi asked, seeming to sense the other¡¯s discomfort.

Kenshin stared at him incredulously, at loss for words, another blush crept up to his face.

¡°I mean¡ª¡° Daichi continued, nonchalantly, ignoring Kenshin, ¡°¡ªalmost every other guy here is head over heel for her and Yuka¡ªshe¡¯s another one of the girls who work here during the daytime.¡±

Kenshin groaned and dropped his head into his arms, Daichi looked on.

¡°I¡¯ll take that as a ¡®no¡¯¡±

Kenshin looked up at Daichi. 

Still a straight face.

Darn.

He sighed. This guy was almost as bad a Hiko, if that¡¯s even possible for someone this young, and he said so.

Daichi cracked a grin, waiting patiently for Kenshin to expand on that. Kenshin made a slightly irritated and embarrassed noise before speaking.

¡°Hiko is my mentor, he taught me swordsmanship and raised me. Rather sarcastic kind of guy, dead infuriating when I¡¯m in a bad mood, but always keeps a straight face. How he does _that_ is beyond me. Remembers the most embarrassing things in my life for me, and criticizes my every move.¡± Kenshin said in a rush.

¡°That bad?¡± Asked Daichi, eyebrows raised.

¡°Not¡­bad. Just¡­well, a lot of verbal abuse goes on. Insults like ¡®demented skunk¡¯ and ¡®baka deshi¡¯ get thrown around pretty much.¡± By now, Daichi was making a desperate attempt to hold back laughter¡­and failing miserably. Kenshin shot him a scorching glare before sighing in utter defeat. ¡°and now you.¡±

Daichi chuckled and looked around.

¡°Seems like everyone¡¯s leaving for the afternoon, got somewhere you have to go Himura?¡± Kenshin shook his head.

¡°Just sword practice and settling in.¡±

¡°Where is your room?¡±

¡°Second floor, third door on the right.¡±

¡°Room mate?¡±

¡°Iie.¡±

¡°Lucky, I have a room mate, gets crowdie sometimes,¡± Daichi stood up, Kenshin followed suit. They made their way through the now almost empty dining room circled to the back of the inn, where a bamboo forest stood farther back.

¡°This inn is near the edge of the city,¡± Daichi informed Kenshin, ¡°some people practice their swords here, but few goes into the woods to practice.¡±

Shouting and cheering drew their attention away from the woods. A small crowd had gathered around someone at the other end of the yard. The sounds of a sword slicing through air and shameless gloating revealed what was going on. Daichi shook his head in disgust.

¡°That thick headed oaf of a room mate is showing off his skills, _again. _Got to admit he¡¯s good though, almost no other Ishins with us can beat him.¡±

¡°So des ka?¡± Kenshin mused, turning away from the crowd, ¡°I think the woods might be slightly quieter than this.¡± He walked towards the woods, a voice halted him on his tracks.

¡°Hey! You there! New kid!¡± Kenshin tensed slightly, eyebrows wrinkling in annoyance. Without turning around, he spoke over his shoulder.

¡°Nani des ka?¡±

¡°I challenge you to a match.¡± He smirked, ¡°to see if you are good enough to be in the Ishin Shishi.¡±

Kenshin thought over the challenge. He really did not want to get into a fight on the first day, but finding out about this person¡¯s technique could prove to be interesting. He wanted to see how that guy fights to beat almost everyone here. A match would do for his afternoon sword practice.

¡°You don¡¯t have to accept Hiro¡¯s challenge if you don¡¯t want to,¡± Daichi said quietly to Kenshin, ¡°but he may bother you for quite a while. He¡¯s persistent.¡±

Hiro, sensing the pause in Kenshin¡¯s part, decided to take matter into his own hands. He stepped forward, banishing his sword.

¡°Come on, kid. I don¡¯t think someone as young as you should be here anyways. Too cowardly to fight? Why don¡¯t you run home to your mama right now?¡± Kenshin¡¯s eyes flashed in anger, how dare he talk about his family. Hiro, not knowing he hit a nerve, chuckled long with many others.

Kenshin whirled around, eyes narrowed and furious. Using his thumb to click his sword out of its sheath, he dropped into battle stance and glared.

¡°Ah. So the little boy¡¯s angry, ne?¡± Hiro laughed and dropped into a battle stance too. ¡°No matter, that just makes everything much more fun.¡± He charged.

Kenshin dodged the first blow easily, moving so fast he was merely nothing more than a blur even to the trained eye. He parried the second blow with the sheath and jumped back, dropping into the Battoujutsu stance.

His eyes narrowed in concentration, he waited until the last split second before he drew his sword. Before anyone could blink, Kenshin¡¯s sword was poised with deadly aim a hair breath away from Hiro¡¯s throat.

The crowd from earlier gaped. Kenshin actually won, and that was not even ten seconds.

Kenshin withdrew the sword and stepped back, sheathing it. Hiro¡¯s eyes were wide and his slacken jaw hung open. He thought that he was going to die. He fell backwards and ended up sitting on the ground.

Slowly, he regained his senses enough to see people clapping Kenshin on the back and complimenting him, few lingered behind.

Daichi approached Kenshin, all smiles.

¡°Unbelievable!¡± He said, looking awed, ¡°what style was that?¡± Kenshin smiled in return.

¡°It¡¯s called the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu.¡±

Excusing himself from the others, Kenshin plucked Daichi from the crowd and went back into the inn.

¡°That should do for practice today.¡± Kenshin said, sitting down on the tatami in his room with Daichi next to him. Daichi¡¯s eyes bugged out.

¡°You call _that **practice**_!?!¡± Kenshin blinked, then nodded.

¡°It¡¯s better than practicing in the woods. Destroying wildlife isn¡¯t as good practice as this.¡± He smile weakly at Daichi¡¯s bewildered expression.

After spending most of the afternoon getting to know each other, Kenshin wandered downstairs, pausing when he neared the kitchen. He turned the corner and walked in.

Okami, while rushing around the kitchen frantically, greeted him warmly.

¡°Himura? Isn¡¯t it?¡± Okami eyed Kenshin critically. Kenshin smiled slightly.

¡°Just call me Kenshin.¡±

¡°Do you know how to chop vegetables?¡± Kenshin stared. He wasn¡¯t expecting that. Okami saw the surprised expression on his face and hurried on.

¡°Oh that¡¯s alright if you don¡¯t want to do it.¡± Kenshin instantly hurried towards the wooden counter.

¡°Iie, iie! I¡¯ll do it!¡± He started to chop the lettuce in front of him, _Hiko made sure I knew how¡­_

Giggling and two voices announced the arrival of two girls. Kenshin groaned inwardly, _yare yare¡­_

Mali and Yuka entered the kitchen, Mali¡¯s eyes lit up instantly when she caught sight of Kenshin. He pretended he didn¡¯t notice them.

¡°Himura! What are you doing here?¡± Kenshin gave up trying to ignore Mali and turned to her and made a helpless gesture with his hands. He pointed to the lettuce he was halfway through cutting.

¡°Cutting vegetables?¡± Mali came over and winked at Kenshin. He sweatdropped.

¡°Let me help you.¡±  
  


Kenshin was ready to bolt. Okami raised her eyebrows at the sight, looking bemused. She decided to save Kenshin from the embarrassment.

¡°Now, now girls. Get to work already!¡±

Mali and Yuka grumbled slightly. Shrugging good-naturally, Mali threw one last flirting look at Kenshin and went back to her work.

Kenshin breathed a silent sigh of relief. Scooting slightly to the side, he continued to cut the lettuce without further, eh, interruptions.

After helping finish some last minute kitchen work, Kenshin trudged upstairs to his room.

He sat in the corner of his room, mulling over the day. It _had_ gone pretty well, mostly, save for Hiro and being made fun of because of his height. Daichi seemed really nice, Okami seemed kind. He winced inwardly when he remembered Mali and Yuka. Disturbing image there.

Knocking on the door disturbed his thoughts. He rose gracefully to his feet and padded silently to the paper sliding door.

Daichi greeted him cheerfully; telling him it was time for dinner. As they entered the dining room, Hiro threw Kenshin a scathing glare, Kenshin remained unscathed, undisturbed.

Trouble was brewing between the two and they both knew it, though the hate was one-sided. But Kenshin didn¡¯t really care; making enemies is the least of his worries now. Being prepared to meet his first battle for the Ishin Shishi is on the top of his list¡­

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Ah, yes! Another chapter done! I hope this chapter is slightly longer than the last one, my Word document tells me its twice a long¡­ 

Anyone out there like Ranma ½ and Inuyasha crossovers? You should try ¡®Sesshoumaru¡¯s Imutochan¡¯. It¡¯s written in script form, I think its pretty good, you should check it out if you can.

Japanese Translations:

Konnichiwas: Hello/ Good day

Watashi wa Daichi des: My name is Daichi

Onimai wa?: What¡¯s your name?

Baka Deshi: Stupid apprentice

Iie: no

Nani des ka?: What?

Battoujutsu: An Hiten Mitsurugi attack when the wielder uses the speed of the draw to power up the attack. (I think)

Tatami: A mat made of straw that usually cover the whole floor.

Yare yare: Oh brother¡­

Wow! That¡¯s a lot of words! *grins* I¡¯ll try to get out the next chapter much faster, but I¡¯m rotating between two of my stories to update.

**Koe760: **Thanks for the review! I¡¯m sorry but this story will not be a yaoi *puppy eyes* Had you ever read Life¡¯s a Dance by Fitz2? It¡¯s a Kenshin/Okita story, you might like it! *Grins* I see you¡¯ve read Shifting the Balance, I personally favor Bishie torture, yaoi or not, but I do hope you will keep reading my fic, JA!

Thanks to everyone else who responded! Thank you **Dragon girl42, kookey (hehe), The Fic Critic, Daughter of Magic, Nameless reviewer **(I¡¯ll try to make changes), **and Koe 760.**

Remember to **REVIEW!!!!**


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